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Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Fixing a Leather Couch

After travel, birthday, and kid posts, I am super excited to have a home project to share!
We have a leather sofa and club chairs in our living room that are really, really comfortable.

 They're about 6 years old and get a lot of use, which is great. 


The problem is, they also get pretty scarred up.

They've been getting worse and worse and I was pretty well resigned to just having scarred up living room furniture. 
I looked online for solutions but there weren't a lot of options. 
Saddle soap didn't help.  

Then I asked our Shoe Repair store owner and he said "shoe polish" like it was the most obvious solution ever. 

Boom!  3 minutes later - FIXED!


I've actually touched them up just a little more since this photo.
David rubbed in some regular old brown shoe polish in and we wiped it off with a white cloth to make sure it was not going to stain anyone's clothes.  No problem.
Free project with shoe polish on hand and old rags.  Awesome!

Love a simple solution to a nagging problem!




88 comments:

Lisa Russell said...

My leather chairs are starting to show wear like yours as well. This is a great tip!

LindyLouMac said...

Amazing what Kiwi shoe polish can achieve, you should send the manufacturer this link :)

Gloria said...

Wow, it looks fantastic! Great tip!
Best,
Gloria

Sallie said...

I've been wondering how to fix the worn spots on the leather furniture. Thanks for the great tip! Visiting from Serenity Now Weekend Bloggy Reading.

Richella Parham said...

I'm here from Amanda's party, and I just had to stop and say THANK YOU! I've been wondering how to touch up my scarred leather sofa. . . never thought to ask the shoe repair guy, and shoe polish never once occurred to me! Of course!! Thank you for publishing a wonderful tip!!

Lori said...

Awesome! Sending this to a relative who is having the same issue!

Six Sisters said...

This is an awesome tip! Never thought of that! We would love for you to come share this at our "Strut Your Stuff Saturday" link party! http://sixsistersstuff.blogspot.com/2011/07/strut-your-stuff-saturday-week-2.html

Love,
The Sisters @ sixsistersstuff.blogspot.com

OrganizingMadeFun said...

Goodness I HAVE shoe polish here that I can use to fix my hubby's leather recliner, too! Awesome idea!

Becky B.
www.organizingmadefun.com
Organizing Made Fun

Laura @ Laura's Crafty Life said...

Thank you for the tip. We have a black leather ottoman and I have been wondering how to fix it.

Paula@SweetPea said...

Great tip! I need to try this on my husband's chair.

LInda said...

What a great tip! I would of never thought of that.

Welcome said...

whoa! i am going to tell my MIL about this! She is searching for a fix on her couch ! great job
Jess

Rica said...

Awesome, i have the same problem with my leather couch i scored for free and i've been looking for a way to fix. Thanks a ton!

Robin @ Bird On A Cake said...

Thanks SO much for posting this!! My kids have put a lot of wear on our leather couches...can't wait to try shoe polish!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing!! Great tip! I have an old scarred leather couch that could definitely use a touch up. :)

Camille said...

This is brilliant!! I am bookmarking this so that I can always remember it. Thanks for sharing your great idea! We would love to have you stop by tomorrow and link up more of your great posts to Strut Your Stuff Saturday!
-Camille @
SixSistersStuff.blogspot.com

...just another preppy shopaholic said...

Im going to pick a can up tomorrow, thank you!

Dollar Store Crafter said...

WOW It Came Out Great !!!

Unknown said...

HOLY SMOKES YOu just made my night! Thanks for sharing this amazing tip!

Anonymous said...

I just bought a set of leather couches and tried your trick. It worked great! Thanks so much for the idea!

Anonymous said...

NO WAY!!!! I just saw your leather repair on Pinterest and I can't believe it, but we have the SAME couch and loveseat as your set! Ours is also worn from jeans, shoes, KIDS in general. I have tried a really good leather conditioner that darkens it for awhile but once it dries you can't tell much difference. I will give the shoe polish a try, thank you so much!!!

Jessica said...

I am so glad taht I saw this! i have wanted to put shoe polish on my chairs and was afraid to do it! I was going to go for theneutral color, but now I will try the brown for sure! thank you!!

Aunt B said...

Very smart! Thanks. :)

marque said...

I have a green leather couch...what could I use for that?

Andi said...

Your tutorial is amazing! I shared it today on my blog. Thanks so much.

Andi

http://crazydazedesigns.blogspot.com/2012/04/10-tough-cleaning-solutions.html

Jennifer M said...

Just found this post through pinterest, and I think I can hear angels singing! I'm so thrilled because we have the very, very, exact same couch, and its middle cushion has been looking terrible, and I have been clueless as to how to fix it. Can't wait to try a.s.a.p.

Thank you!

Lynn Gardner said...

Thanks so much for sharing this tip! My 3 yr old leather armchairs are starting to look worse for wear and I despaired of getting them to look pretty again.

danellekim said...

Purchasing a leather couch definitely is quite popular because new manufacturing techniques have been developed that make this selection less costly than it used to be.

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Margie Lou said...

I know it's been some time since you first blogged this, but I was wondering how your couches are holding up? Has the polish come off on clothes?

Thank you for the great tip!

Margie

Whyte23 said...

This is a great tip... it does work. I've done it on my leather office chair in Black!!! Thank you for sharing.

ruzzel01 said...

Keep it up. You have a great place.

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jesse said...

after using shoe polish, rub mink oil in to keep the leather soft

Unknown said...

First of all, very nice post and shoe polish seems very different and interesting idea to repair of leather furniture.

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Unknown said...

Amazing post and thanks for sharing ur experince with us.

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Unknown said...

It continued to develop through the years and was given varied styles and shapes to harmonize with the modern interior of any home. Luxury lounges is either leather or fabric upholstered and is considered by some as a luxury furniture.

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priyanka sinha said...

Leather Filler is a very flexible filler used for fixing scuffs, scratches , surface cracking and small holes in leather. The product is ideal to use on areas of high wear area for example seating sections and arms, the filler will leave a long lasting durable finish.
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Dawn620 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Dawn620 said...

OH MY GOSH! I love you!! My couch looks brand-spanking new! Such a simple and logical idea I wish I would have thought of sooner! Thank you for sharing!

Joergen said...

We have a leather sofa and club chairs in our living room that are really, really ... leathersofasforlivingroom.blogspot.com

Unknown said...

I like the idea, but I am nervous that it will leech onto clothing when I sit on the sofa where I have put the polish. Will this happen?

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MomInTraining3 said...

It's not working for me. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. I'm using shoe polish. Letting it dry then Buffing it out. I'd love to hear some suggestions or feedback from anyone that has tried it. Thank you

Rapy said...

I've a white leather sofa, scratched by my cats : how I can do?
Thanks

Unknown said...

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Unknown said...

Does this work for all colors? Our couch is dark navy blue.

Unknown said...

Can the author or anyone who has tried this tell me, did you just do the worn spots, or did you have to do the whole sofa so that it matched? I could see that taking a lot of shoe polish! And time!

Dawn620 said...

I've done it and it does work. You only need to do the area that needs it. You will have to reapply it now and then...depending on the use your furniture gets. Hope that helps.

Lisa B. said...

I do the same thing with leather handbags and wallets. Most of mine are black or brown, and when they get worn spots I use shoe polish. The key is using it properly. Not too much. Also shoe edging/edge dressing (you can get it from your shoe repair place) is really useful for restoring the worn piping around the edges of leather bags.

Kayla said...

useful tips, I could use the same way to my leather sectional sofa

Anonymous said...

I was seeking this convinced info for a long time. Thank you for offering such great information and good luck. life insurance

Unknown said...

I am looking for a leather sofa for my new living room.

Unknown said...

When you are trying to select your furniture design, and style will always be the initial factors that attract you. Leather sofas are made for you to sit on, and a lot of research goes into that area, as your comfort will not be ignored, and the variety of sofas offered means there is something for everyone. Before buying a leather sofa recliner take a look on the best recliner reviews.

Tink said...

I hired a furniture repairman who came to the house and used a paintbrush to apply stain. Cost $275 and it lasted about a week. tried tea bags to stain the leather...this did not work. Thought of shoe polish but couldn't find anyone else who tried it. I was afraid it would rub off on clothing. Thanks for the post. The shoe polish works great.

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Kipchen said...

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Unknown said...

You were smart to buy a better quality sofa. I found a steal on a leather sofa and love seat but it’s only been 2 years and its started to break down. Of course I have a 9 yo, a 3 yo, 1 dog, and a 30 pound cat playing on it all the time!

Thank you for mentioning using the outdoor cushions as a temporary repair for your couch. It’s nice to hear other people making do!

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Let me know what you think!

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